


Anniversary

by ancalime8301



Series: Legacy [25]
Category: The Lord of the Rings (Movies)
Genre: Gen, Illnesses, Post Mpreg
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2004-06-18
Updated: 2004-06-18
Packaged: 2018-06-08 07:10:02
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,261
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6844315
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ancalime8301/pseuds/ancalime8301
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Frodo's first anniversary illness after his daughter was born.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Anniversary

**Author's Note:**

> A ficlet to celebrate a year to the day of my first mpreg piece, from that same universe (of course), aptly titled "Anniversary" for a couple of reasons.

Week-old Primula woke abruptly, for an unapparent reason. Her usual complaints were satisfactorily assuaged for the moment, not being hungry and having an empty nappy, but she knew something was wrong. Not knowing what that might be, she still knew something required attention. Accordingly, she began to wail.

~~~~

The morning light was growing brighter and Sam was nearing wakefulness when he heard little Prim begin crying in the next room. He considered rising to get her and save Frodo the trouble of getting up, but remembered Frodo's insistence yesterday that he get used to caring for the babe on his own, never mind the fact that Lord Elrond had disapproved of his being up and about already. So Sam remained abed, waiting for the cries to cease when Frodo picked her up from the cradle.

But the cries didn't cease. If anything, they grew more distressed as the minutes slowly ticked by. So Sam quickly rose, pulled on a robe, and hurried to Frodo's room.

The cradle lay between the bed and the door, so Sam soon reached the quite red-faced Prim and picked her up, gently shushing her and bouncing her a bit. She calmed somewhat now that she was in someone's arms, but remained fretful as Sam checked her nappy, which was dry. That consideration taken care of, he shifted her to his arm and gave her a finger to suck on while he went over to the bed.

Frodo lay quietly, his back to Sam. Sam was willing to bet that he'd overtaxed himself -again- and simply slept through his daughter's crying due to his exhaustion. Still bouncing the babe to keep her calm, he came around the bed to rouse Frodo. Frodo's eyes were closed and he seemed asleep, though his face was a shade pale for Sam's liking. Taking his finger from Prim's mouth, which she wasn't pleased about but she did not fuss, he reached out to shake Frodo.

Frodo felt too warm to the touch. Sam frowned, moving his hand from shoulder to neck, seeing if the heat was widespread or just the result of Frodo recently turning over from lying on that shoulder, and as his hand reached the joining of neck and shoulder, Frodo audibly gasped in pain. Snatching his hand back as if he'd been burned, Sam ventured, "Mr. Frodo?"

Frodo did not answer. Sam pressed the back of his hand to the other hobbit's forehead, displeased with the warmth, though that in itself wasn't enough to be alarmed about. Patting the pale cheek gently, Sam said, "Mr. Frodo, wake up!" When that didn't work, he shook his shoulder carefully, not wanting to cause him any further pain.

But nothing would rouse him. At a loss of what to do, particularly since he still had a babe perched in the crook of one arm, Sam knelt on the edge of the bed and pushed Frodo's shoulder until he rolled onto his back. He'd hoped the unexpected motion would aid his master in regaining consciousness, but it only served to make him more worried when Frodo did not try to resist at all and just flopped limply onto his back.

He decided he must fetch Elrond, and quickly. Sam was about to dash down the corridor in search of the elf lord, but realized that he was still holding a very restless Primula. Torn between leaving her and bringing her with, he realized he'd make better time without her and hurriedly set her down in her crib. She began to cry as soon as she was put down, but Sam ignored her and set out to find Elrond.

After combing what seemed to be the whole of the expansive House, Sam finally found the elf he sought breakfasting with Strider and the Lady Arwen. All three looked up as Sam made his undignified entry to the patio where they sat, and Elrond and Strider had already begun to stand up by the time he panted, "Somethin's wrong with Mr. Frodo." Without looking to see if they were coming -he knew they would, so why bother check?- he turned 'round again and hurried back to Frodo's room.

Elrond and Strider were all business as they passed Primula by to examine Frodo, but Sam stopped and picked up the squalling babe -as much as he'd like to follow them, he knew it would be harder for the others to converse with crying in the background. A touch on his shoulder and the abrupt appearance of Lady Arwen behind him startled him. She said, "Let me take her. You should go to Frodo."

Grateful, Sam handed Primula to her. Little Prim seemed fascinated by this new being and stopped whimpering for the time being, reaching out with uncoordinated arms to tangle her fingers in the long hair. Arwen laughed and held the child close, taking her out of the room.

Sam returned to the bedside to see Elrond intently examining the healing incision by Frodo's hip, feeling it with careful fingers. After a moment, he spoke to Strider in Elvish, slightly shaking his head. Sam could see a bit of blood in the wound, but even he could figure that was from Frodo being up and about yesterday, and likely from picking Primula up from her crib. For a moment, Sam wanted to roundly scold his master for his stubborn foolishness, but that wouldn't do him any good at the moment.

The two healers were still conversing as Elrond pulled Frodo's nightshirt back down and covered him snugly once again. "Check his neck," Sam blurted before he could stop himself. Both of the Big Folk halted and looked at him, and he was compelled to continue. "His neck. I brushed it earlier and he cried out."

Strider nodded, something like understanding crossing his face, and he spoke quickly to Elrond, who lifted the limp hobbit's head while Strider prodded at the back of Frodo's neck, while Sam watched anxiously. Strider drew a low moan from Frodo by brushing over a certain spot, and that reaction seemed to please the healers. "Sam, would you put some warm water in a basin?" Strider asked, his manner not quite so urgent as before.

Sam still hurried to obey, watching from a distance as they arranged Frodo on his side as Sam had found him, Strider kneeling on the bed behind Frodo's back to keep him in place. When he brought the basin over, Elrond took it and placed it on the table beside the bed, and Strider leaned over to pick up a few leaves and threw them into the water. Sam immediately recognized the smell of athelas.

"Do you recall the date, Sam?" Strider inquired as they waited for the leaves to stew a bit.

"March the 13th, near as I can reckon."

"What do you recall of a year ago, on this date?"

"This date, sir?" Sam asked, puzzled. "It was right hard to keep track o' days as we went, if you follow me. Once we got closer to the Black Land, we were never even sure what was day or night."

"Of course," Strider conceded, reaching for the cloth Elrond had finished soaking in the water and then placing it on Frodo's neck. What followed brought an end to the conversation, for Frodo's reaction was instantaneous, stiffening and struggling to get away from the touch of the cloth. It took them a few moments to control him enough that Strider could dab at the spot without fear of being struck by a stray arm or leg.

From his perch straddling Frodo's legs to keep him from kicking, Sam could see a bit better as Strider tried to help Frodo's hurts, and he abruptly understood what the man had been getting at. "It's that spider bite, isn't it?"

Elrond glanced at him briefly. "Indeed. And I don't doubt his overexertions of yesterday affected the severity of this particular recurrence."

Sam turned the words over in his head, knowing there was something else the elf was alluding to, but not sure what. "This particular recurrence?" he asked uncertainly. "You mean this has happened before?"

"Not this precisely, but something very similar occurred in October."

October... "Weathertop," Sam recognized. Elrond simply nodded. "Will the journey always haunt him so?"

"We cannot say for sure, Sam," Strider put in, "but we fear it."

~~~~

Frodo remained unresponsive to their efforts through most of the day; when he grew more restless, for a time they were hopeful it indicated an improvement in his condition, but the tossing and turning only served to weary him and elevate his fever until he once again lay still. Sam remained by his bedside continually, though Elrond had forced him to go and change out of his nightshirt and robe into day clothes before allowing him to tend to Frodo. Knowing Sam had been the one to rescue Frodo on so many occasions, Elrond and Aragorn hoped the hobbit would be able call Frodo back since their efforts so far had proved to be in vain.

Primula remained fussy as well, refusing all offers of milk from a bottle and never giving in to sleep even when it was apparent the babe was crying as much from tiredness as distress. She was kept away from Frodo's room out of concern that she would disturb what rest he may be getting, though Sam couldn't help but wonder if it would be better for them both to be in closer proximity. After all, wasn't the bond between parent and child supposed to be stronger than anything else? Perhaps that would even include whatever evil had reawakened to snare his master again.

He did not venture to mention this until close to evening, when another concerned elf had entered to speak to Elrond regarding the hobbit child -though Sam could not understand their speech (he wondered if they did that a-purpose), he could tell by the other elf's expressions and gestures who was the subject of their conversation. Aragorn was currently engaged in the tricky business of getting some water into Frodo, and when he paused to make Frodo swallow, Sam asked, "Wouldn't it be better if they were together?"

Aragorn looked at him in puzzlement. "What do you mean?"

"Mr. Frodo and little Prim, I mean. Wouldn't it be better for them both if they were together like? Since they're prob'ly not used to being apart, an' all."

Aragorn sat in thought as he trickled another bit of water into Frodo's mouth. "I shall suggest it to Elrond," he said finally, settling Frodo back onto the pillows before rising from where he'd sat to hold up the hobbit and going to where Elrond stood, thoughtfully staring into the fire.

Sam tried to follow the discussion -now he was sure they were lapsing into Elvish just to confuse him- but the decision remained obscure until Aragorn left the room and Elrond came to the side of the bed, first stopping to pat Bilbo lightly on the shoulder where he sat sleeping in a chair (a position he'd maintained since he'd awoken and found out about Frodo's illness).

It was but a few moments before they heard Primula's cries approaching. When Aragorn stepped into the room, Sam could tell the poor bairn had quite a day of screaming her lungs out and was quite tired out. He rather admired her ability to continue expressing her distress (though it was quite grating on the ears after a time), and knew that she had most definitely acquired her father's stubborn nature.

The true test came when they put her on a pillow next to Frodo. She quieted almost immediately, perhaps puzzled about what they were doing now, and disjointedly waved her arms and legs about as she still whimpered. But it was Frodo the others were watching, and at first nothing seemed to change. Then he quirked an eyebrow and turned his head in the direction of the babe's noises. She did not stop her fretting until Frodo managed to lay a hand gently on her; then she smiled and squealed, kicking more enthusiastically as he rubbed her stomach lightly.

Frodo soon grew tired -even though he moved no further and did not even open his eyes- and fell into a restful sleep for the first time that day, and when his hand stopped reassuring her, Prim grew fretful again. This time, however, it was solely due to hunger, for the observers could hear her small stomach registering its discontent.

Sam turned to Aragorn. "Did you bring one of those bottles?" Aragorn handed it to him without a word, and the gardener set to feeding the hungry babe. When her greedy sucking slowed and finally stopped, Sam carefully picked her up from under Frodo's hand to pat her before putting her back down to sleep on the pillow.

When he was finished, Aragorn and Elrond were still standing beside the bed, Aragorn looking rather amused. "Plain hobbit-sense wins the day," he said with a chuckle as he checked Frodo's temperature and found it to be lower than before. "Sam, do you always know what to do for Frodo?"

"Not always," Sam answered modestly, blushing. "But you aren't a hobbit, begging your pardon, so I can guess at what he wants closer than you can."

And it seemed Sam had hit the nail on the head, as it were, for both Frodo and Prim slept peacefully after that, and the fever and other discomforts Frodo had endured throughout the day melted away.


End file.
